Sin to Love 2 (Spencer Reid Love Story)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Carmen couldn't stop looking all over the Las Vegas Strip, embracing the scenery that she had never seen in her entire life and did she ever feel like she missed out on a lot when she was sent away. Reid saw her curiosity and joy beaming from her wondering, bright eyes as she walked with a lot of pep in her step as they reached the block where the bar they were going to was. He could tell that this scene was nothing but a faint memory.

She looked at Reid, which caught him off guard from his original gaze at her. She smiled widely and grabbed his hand and swayed it gently back and forth. Reid loved it when she was happy like this. He always wished she would stay like this everyday, but knowing her and her mentality, she would go back to a state of depression.

"You know, it's such a relief to be back in your home town and not having anyone know who you are," Carmen pointed out.

Maybe that's why she was so loose. There was no Hotch judging her. No foster father to worry about. Nothing but new surroundings and a fading past to fill her vision of what life should have been. He smiled at her in agreement of what she had stated.

"My mother knows your name pretty well now though," Reid pointed out, which made Carmen giggle.

"Will your friend, Ethan, know my name just as well as your mother does?" Carmen playfully asked.

Reid smiled. "Hmm, I don't know. She did like your name a lot,"

"Like? She loved it. She couldn't stop saying it,"

"You sure that wasn't because she asked you to do a million and one things?" Reid joked.

Carmen sarcastically laughed. "You think you're funny, don't ya?"

Reid proudly nodded his head and smiled. Carmen giggled as she leaned in closer to Reid as they finally walked towards a local bar that was under the radar, but Ethan said that it was beyond any other bar he had been to. Carmen even vouched on Ethan's claim, stating that anything under the radar was better. Reid opened the door for Carmen, letting her take the first glance of where they'd spend their first new years together. Reid obviously wanting more to come.

He walked back to Carmen's side just in time to see that same sparkle in her eyes that gleamed bright whenever she was excited about something. She gets that look mostly when she looks at astonishing art, Reid knew that for a fact. Then he noticed a smile that wasn't quite there. If a smile could appear faded, barely even present, that's what Carmen had on. He had the feeling that the surroundings reminded her of those nights spent at the High Noon Saloon back in Barstow, wallowing away her sorrow into a mic for everyone to interpret in their own way. He remembered when he heard her sing for the first time how intrigued he was with her. Even more than before that is.

Reid gently tugged on her hand to get her attention back. She quickly snapped out of any thought she was in and looked at Reid with a gentle smile as if nothing happened. She always did that. He would ask her what she was really thinking instead of speculating himself, but he didn't find it the right time to do that.

"How about we take a seat and wait for Ethan?" Reid suggested and Carmen nodded in agreement.

He led her over to this table in the middle of the bar. He was surprised that he even found an empty table in the first place since the bar was getting packed by the second. They sat at the fairly high table, kind of speechless for awhile, having no words to being in this kind of atmosphere together again. Carmen picked up the little menu on the table that was filled with every alcoholic drink that her heart desired, but her liver cringed to intake.

"Ooo, how about we get a round of shots? Or a Zombie," Carmen excitedly said, her eyes basically glowing.

Reid swiftly took the small menu away from her. He secretly didn't like when Carmen drank an excessive amount of alcohol or really strong alcoholic drinks because he knew she did it to fill the sadness that he couldn't help go away.